BIRTH OF “THE 21 SERIES”

I was exhausted after the mid-terms — delighted, happy and exhausted. I felt the same after the birth of my son, M. A big miracle happened in 1989 and a smaller one in 2016. After all the hard work on both occasions I just wanted to rest. Many of my fellow activists felt the same after the House mid-term elections. They could do nothing political other than watch pundits wax and wane on the Blue Wave and what it meant for Trump. More exciting was watching the seating of the 116th Congress.

To recap that wonderful event, the House won:

· 67 Democratic seats claiming majority rule in the House of Representatives

· 38 Democratic women joined Congress

· 9 Democrats previously worked in the CIA or are veterans of the military

· 23 Democrats are people of color and many represent mostly white districts

· The class boasts the first Native American Congresswomen and the first Muslim Congresswoman

· 25 of the Democrats are Progressives including 4 who will represent districts Trump won in 2016. 19 other Democrats also won in Trump districts

· Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker of the House and is third in line to become President of the United States

· Adam Schiff is now Chairman of the Intelligence Committee

· Elijah Cummings is Chairman of the Oversight Committee

· Jerry Nadler is Chairman of the Judiciary Committee

The Democrats now have oversight power to reign in Trump and his administration. The committees are busy drafting and passing bills, rules, and setting the groundwork for hearings and investigations. I feel like I can breathe again — at least a little bit. There are responsible people back in charge of one branch of the government and they have power to stop Trump on many fronts.

While that is welcome news, I have begun to wonder what now am I supposed to do. I could write encouraging postcards to the legislators and wish them well. I could let them know my priorities and ask them to represent my interests. I may do that as the session unfolds, but I also know they will do their jobs well. I have been wondering if my energy could be put to better use.

I loved the mid-term GOTV effort. I loved that Democrats, Independents and principled Republicans could make their voices heard and their votes count in House races. Our votes changed the course of the corrupt 2016 elections and brought some sanity and oversight back to Washington. That said, we lost the Senate; they hold an even bigger majority after the mid-terms. There are currently 47 Democrats and Independents and 53 Republicans.

That is a problem so the question becomes how do we change that? Well I went looking and discovered 21 Republican Senators are up for re-election in 2020. That is absolutely wonderful news. They are:

Lamar Alexander (R — Tennessee)

Shelly Moore Capito (R — West Virginia)

Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana)

Susan Collins (R-Maine)

John Cornyn (R-Texas)

Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas)

Steve Daines (R-Montana)

Mike Enzi (R-Wyoming)

Joni Ernst (R-Iowa)

Cory Gardner (R -Colorado)

Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina)

Cindy Hyde-smith (R-Mississippi)

Martha McSally (R-Arizona)

Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky)

David Perdue (R-Georgia)

Jim Risch (R-Idaho)

Pat Roberts (R-Kansas)

Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota)

Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska)

Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska)

Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina)

Lamar Alexander (Tennessee) and Mike Rounds (South Dakota) have already announced they will not be seeking re-election in 2020.

My next question was what could I do with these 21? I know exactly what I would be doing if Democratic challengers had announced their decision to run against these incumbents. I would be working with my tribe to get fellow Democrats to the ballot box, but that is still too far away.

On the other hand, I simply cannot sit silent while I see these 21 Senators continuing to shield and protect Trump and his cruel unethical policies. My imperfect solution for the moment — particularly with respect to the shutdown is to start “The 21 Series”.

Every morning since January 10th, I have gone to: https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

This government site provides a link to each Senator’s official website and is a way for citizens to share their thoughts and opinions about issues and legislation. I have written Senators on both sides of the aisle many times since the 2016 election. It takes a lot of time.

I decided to narrow my focus and begin writing my 21 (as I affectionately call them in my head) each day to share my thoughts and feelings about the Trump shutdown — to begin with. I am on auto-fill so this process takes me 15–20 minutes each morning.

I seek to name the issues and provide supporting facts. I think that is important. I end the message with a reminder of the Blue Wave and let them know they will likely be swept away by a Blue Tsunami in 2020. I think that is the most important part of the message. I want them to know that while we are quiet in the moment, there are many who will be working to bring Democrats into the Senate.

My internal parts are all over the place on these messages. Some say they are too fierce. Some say oh no we are back to against not for; some parts are totally fine with that. I let the parts know that in this moment until we have candidates who will run against the Republicans in 2020 this series will help me feel I am using my voice and power.

I took a major news break after November 6th so this process is helping me become informed on the issues. I feel I am taking a daily action which helps my helpless, hopeless, victim parts. I am also trying to channel Nancy Pelosi who is my role model in this fight — strong, clear, forceful but impeccable with her word. Her friend in the House refers to her as “satin and steel”. I like that.

I have a ways to go to be like Nancy, but I am only 9 days into my series. To help me be accountable and impeccable in my word, I have decided to post the messages I have already sent and the new ones I write each morning. I am a bit embarrassed by some of the early ones; they are “meaner” than I would wish. I can feel the parts that are grieving and angry and want to berate the Senators until they change. I let them have a voice in those messages.

That said, I know better than most professionally and personally such a strategy is ineffective in the long run. I can comfort my grieving parts; I can let them know we will move back to a total “for” strategy when challengers are announced but in the meantime we can learn to be “satin and steel”. I can feel them smiling just a bit.

So what follows are my opening emails to The 21.